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We have often heard economists say that the Australian job market is the envy of major economies around the world. While certain areas of the domestic economy such as retail and construction continue to struggle, other areas such as the mining industry continue to grow. With all the drama and lack of job security presently occurring in Europe, it is no surprise that Australia is seeing a growth of overseas workers hitting our shores.

The Australian job market is very different to overseas job markets, and in order to get ahead there are many rules that need to be followed. From writing your resume to preparing for your interview, the more you can adapt to the “Australian way”, the greater your chances will be of finding success.

Australian Resume Writing:

The Australian resume is very different to a European, American or Asian resume, and it is very important that your resume is written, formatted, styled and presented accordingly.

10 tips to “Australianise” your resume

Use Australian English or English UK spelling as opposed to American English (words such as “specialise” or “realise” need to be spelt with an “S” as opposed to a “Z”)

No picture is required on your Australian Resume

Focus on achievement-based statements rather than basic responsibilities and daily duties

Provide examples as much as possible to highlight the value that you added to the organisation or business. The more you can quantify your examples the better!

The only contact details that are necessary on your resume are your name, address, telephone number and email address. Information such as your birth date, race, age, religion or marital status is not required and not recommended. Do not open yourself up to prejudice or discrimination

Professionalise your email address. Your email address portrays an impression of the type of person you are. Weird and crazy email addresses need to be replaced with more professional addresses

Simplify the layout of the resume. This is open to interpretation, but the fancier you try to make the resume, the less appealing it becomes. Use dot points rather than writing long paragraphs and an easy to read font to make the hiring manager’s job as easy as possible

Prepare the resume from the reader’s point of view. This is often one of the hardest things that candidates struggle with when writing their resume. No matter what role you are applying for, make sure you target your resume toward that role. Even if you are in the process of changing your career, you still need to highlight the key transferable skills that you can bring to this new job

Providing a description of your organisation can be a good idea for overseas job seekers, especially when the business is not known in Australia but for large multinational companies (such as PWC, HSBC, Hewlett Packard, etc), there is no need to provide the reader with a description. This only wastes room on the resume and does not provide any value

While there is no exact rule on how long your resume should be, it is accepted practice that a resume should be no longer than 1-2 pages for a student / graduate and no more than 4-5 pages for a senior professional or executive. Remember the golden rule of resume writing is to show value to the reader. Quality, not quantity, will make your resume stand out from the crowd

The best way to market your career for employment is through your resume. It is your first point of contact and first impression, and in today’s society first impressions count! If you want to get noticed and to leave an impact, your executive resume needs to be written perfectly and professionally. In accordance with the human resources experts, there are five basic concepts on how to write the executive resume.

An executive resume must be able to market your skills and highlight your qualifications and experience. As an executive, it is expected that you are able to perform the duties and responsibilities. It is also expected that you have the experience in this type of role, and therefore simply listing your basic duties is not enough to stand out as an executive. The executive resume must focus on the intangible skills that you can bring to the job and it needs to reflect your visions and skills.

Before you sit down to write your resume, imagine that you are the person reading it. So, this implies that you need to put yourself in the shoes of an employer. For every job application, your resume needs to be targeted and directly written towards the job you are applying for. If there is a great emphasis on leadership, then the executive resume needs to highlight leadership examples and areas of your past work history where you displayed leadership, supervision and managerial expertise to lead and guide employers. Using examples and quantifiable numbers will aid your resume.

Rather than a broad statement such as “exceeded sales targets on a monthly basis”, turn this statement into an accomplishment statement that uses evidence to back up the statement:

“Exceeded sales targets by 25% over a 12 month period while working in highly competitive markets, leading to an overall increase in expected revenue by $100,000”

The ten steps in drafting the perfect executive resume:

Step 1: The first step is to read through the job vacancy profile and begin to draft job objectives. Of course, they must be responsive to the position you are applying for

Step 2: Identify what knowledge, skills, and experiences will suit the job position best

Step 3: Create a shortlist of your qualifications and experiences that will reflect your suitability for the position

Step 4: Draw from your past experiences and search for accomplishments that prove you can effectively perform the job responsibilities

Step 5: Elaborate on your brief accomplishments that emphasize your abilities in handling the position you are applying for. It is also very important to emphasize how your work has benefited your previous employers

Step 6: Prepare your work history in chronological order, emphasizing your achievements. Concentrate on areas of how you added value to that positions (increased profit, reduced costs, implemented a new proposal, increased accuracy, project work, employee development, leadership initiatives, awards and recognition). Ensure that your work history is targeted towards the role you are applying for

Step 7: Don’t forget to list your educational qualifications, especially those that are relevant to the position. As an executive you have probably completed relevant training courses or leadership workshops that will further aid your resume application

Step 8: Presentation is crucial and the key is consistency!

Step 9: Target your resume with relevant information that will aid you in getting the job. At the executive level, the hiring manager is looking at your overall history – the tangible and intangible elements that make you an executive who can lead the business forward in a positive way. As mentioned previously, employers are looking for more than just work history when making personnel decisions at the executive level

Step 10: Don’t forget to use strategic keywords throughout your resume and even include 10-12 keywords to highlight your key skills. Examples of strategic keywords include:

Are you applying for an executive position and need a professional resume to ensure that you get the job? The team at RedStarResume can help you write a targeted resume that will portray all of your qualities to your potential future employer and highlight all of your key skills that will make you the perfect person for the job. You will be assigned a senior writer who has the experience and expertise in presenting your skills, capabilities and achievements.